Archive | Bicycles

We have been lucky in Rhode Island recently to have avoided deadly collisions involving bicyclists. That streak has now, tragically, ended. On Friday, Charlie Hawkins of North Providence was hit and killed while crossing a four-lane road in Warwick in the early evening.

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Traffic fatalities are not acceptable. Until our state and local governments take responsibility for making our streets safer, this sort of horrific tragedy will continue to happen. Failure to make our streets safer for all road users is unacceptable.

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation is now “reevaluating” the bridge project, RIDOT Director Peter Alviti Jr. said in a statement in response to questions from The Providence Journal.

“Given our current funding levels, RIDOT is reevaluating this project given the availability of funding,” Alviti wrote. “RIDOT must take into consideration the many needs for Rhode Island’s deficient bridges and deteriorated roadways. With reliable, predictable funding provided through the RhodeWorks program, RIDOT would be in a better position to schedule and fund projects such as the pedestrian bridge.”

The Feds let us use the money we’d save on not removing the piers in the river on the new highway. Will the Feds make us remove the piers if we don’t build the bridge?

Salisbury said his association would be “really disappointed” if the bridge isn’t built — plus, he questions what would happen to the old highway piers that once carried Route 195 over the river and now remain in the river, intended to carry the pedestrian bridge along the highway’s old path. Seven years ago, the DOT agreed to build the pedestrian bridge on those piers — and said the $2 million it would save by not demolishing them would go toward building the bridge. The DOT has already paid $1.4 million to design the pedestrian bridge, which was expected to cost $5.5 million.

Also, last week, PBN reported on possible changes to the design of the bridge.

With spring in the air, the City of Providence and the RI Bicycle Coalition invite you to celebrate Bike to Work Day as part of National Bike Month.

Free coffee and food will be provided to participants. Other activities include:

Bike demos

Raffles

Bike-powered charging station for your electronics

Photo booth

Information from community organizations and local vendors

Mayor Elorza is excited to demonstrate his support for bike commuting by leading one of the six bike trains to Bike to Work Day! Join one of these 1-3 mile trains starting in different locations across the city. Meet your bike train leaders at one of the following stops at 7:30am to bike downtown together.

If you were thinking that, come the first warm sunny spring day, you’d hop on your bike and check out the new “linear park” on the Washington Bridge — or even that you’d commute to work over it — think again.

Already behind schedule last fall, the projected completion of the span linking the East Bay Bike Path to Providence’s India Point Park has been pushed back until June, according to Rose Amoros, spokeswoman for the Department of Transportation.

You can blame the cold, snowy winter for the further delays, Amoros said.